Lucy's Apartment
by FireDragonPhia
Summary: Lucy was always the person to talk to whenever anyone in the guild was facing any sort of problem. It seemed that everyone had visited the woman at some point. Here are the stories. *Warning! This story may contain spoilers! Read at your own risk!* -Takes place AFTER Tartaros- an AU of the guild NOT disbanding.- The main ships will be shipped. NALU, GALE, GRUVIA, JERZA, and more.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

 ***DISCLAIMER: I _do not_ own Fairy Tail or any of its characters! That all belongs to Hiro Mashima! Please support the official release!***

* * *

Lucy absolutely hated to see her friends hurt. Whether they were hurt emotionally, mentally or phyically, she just couldn't stand it.

So whenever anyone from the guild broke into her home to just talk to her about something, she never turned them away. Not like she used to when she had first joined the rambunctious guild.

For some odd reason, the guild members always came to her. It was strange and flattering at the same time.

It seemed that everyone had come to her at least once in the few years she's been at the guild. Some had even come more times than once.

No one was an exception when it came to visiting her. Not even Gajeel or Laxus.

Here are a few of their stories...

* * *

 **This explores themes from serious all the way to humorous, so be ready for some heavy themes as well as silly ones!**

 **The times in which these stories fall in come in a somewhat random order, but most of them take place _after_ the Tartaros ark! This is sort of an AU in which FT doesn't disband. (I hope you enjoy!)**


	2. Chapter 1: Wendy

Lucy sat in her apartment one day, reading a book and enjoying a rare moment of peace. However, it came to an end when she heard a gentle knocking at her door. Her eyebrows furrowed as she set her book down, throwing her blanket off her body and heading to the door.

She opened the door to see a figeting blue haired teen, slightly shorter than the blonde herself. The teen was wringing out her hands as she looked up to the woman, her eyes widening for a split second.

"L-Lu-Lucy-san!" She exclaimed, her cheeks blazing red as Lucy tried not to smile.

"Hey, Wendy." The blonde responded, steping aside so the teen could enter. "Why don't you come inside and I'll make us some tea?"

The teen complied with the blonde, seeming more clumsy than usual as she nearly tripped over her own feet. She made her way to the woman's table, sitting herself down as Lucy put on a pot of water.

"So," She started, making the younger girl jump. "what brings you here today?"

Wendy scratched the back of her head sheepishly, her cheeks flushing a deep scarlet.

"W-Well, you s-s-see, I-I um..." The girl tripped over her words, the blonde giggling at her nervous and sheepish expression.

"Boy troubles?" Lucy interrupted, the teen snapping her gaze to the older mage.

"H-How did y-you guess?" She asked, sounding genuinely surprised.

"Well, you don't have Charle with you and you look like a tomato , so I just put two and two together." Lucy answered with a shrug. "Besides, I was just like you when I went to talk to Mira about boys, or really just one in particular..." Wendy looked at her with slight confusion before Lucy cleared her throat.

"Anyway, let's get down to it." She spoke, pouring some tea into two seperate mugs and bringing them over to the blue haired girl. She set one of the mugs down in front of the teen, before taking the spot directly across from the dragon slayer.

"So, what's on your mind?" Lucy asked, sipping her scalding hot tea without so much as a cringe. Wendy was slightly impressed that she could do that, but focused on her problem which caused her to shake with nervousness all over again.

"I-I think th-that I m-mi-might ... _l-like_ Romeo." She stuttered out, the blonde allowing a small smile to stretch across her face. The dragon slayer felt better as she said the words, an air of calmness spreading over herself. She suddenly felt slightly more confident.

"Tell me why you think that." Lucy said, as if the task was easy. Wendy looked up to her, the confidence she had found faltering slightly. As if noticing, Lucy said, "Take a deep breath, Wendy. It's just you and I, no one else is going to hear."

Brown eyes met her own as Wendy did as she was told, now wishing she had gone to the blonde sooner.

"W-Well, whenever I-I'm around him I f-feel all warm and stuff." She said, resting her hand over her heart. "I feel r-really, really protective of him and I want to keep him safe, and wh-whenever he talks to someone else I start to feel all sick. When w-we go on jobs alone he always holds my h-hand and one time we even slept in th-the s-s-same bed!" Her cheeks flushed again as Lucy sipped her tea again, nodding.

"He doesn't do anything to you, right?" The blonde asked, her voice taking on a fierce and slightly motherly edge. Wendy immediately shook her head wildly, waving her hands in front of her with a hint of horror.

"N-No, no! Of c-co-course not! H-He's not l-like that!" She exclaimed, shaking her head still.

"Sorry! Sorry!" The blonde said, waving her off. "I was just making sure." She took another sip of her tea before continuing, Wendy doing the same. "It really does seem that you've fallen for him though." The blue haired girl slumped down as her heart drummed painfully against her chest, sudden sadness filtering through her. There was no way he felt the same. Lucy looked at her with empathy, taking in a small breath.

"Wendy." She said, the teen looking to the Celestial mage as she smiled gently. "This doesn't have to be a sad thing. I know you're probably thinking that he doesn't feel the same or something crazy like that. But the thing is, there is _no_ way that is true. I've seen the way he looks at you, and it's different from how a friend looks at another friend.

"You don't have to act any different around him than you usually do either, and when you think the time is right to tell him how you feel, then do it. That boy would have to be a colossal idiot to turn you down." The blonde gave her a reassuring look as she sat up in her seat, reaching for her tea and taking another long sip. Wendy looked to be calculatig something before her eyes brightened.

"You're right!" Wendy proclaimed, sudden excitement written on her features. She stood up quickly, a smile forming as she ran over to the blonde and hugged her tightly.

"Thank you so much Lucy-san!" She said, the mage merely laughing as she pulled away. "I'm going to see if Romeo wants to go on a job with me! See ya later!" The dragon slayer bolted away from the blonde, leaving her smiling where she sat.

Lucy set down her tea on the table, feeling a shock wave of Wendy's pure excitement.

"What a lucky boy." She muttered.

* * *

 **Hello.**

 **I hope you enjoyed, and I'm sorry for any grammatical or spelling errors- it's difficult to type when you're a dragon. You know, big claws- small laptop. It's a wonder I didn't break Chica. (Chica is the name of my laptop jsyk)**

 **How is everyone of the world? Doing good? What did y'all get for the Christmas if you celebrate it? Is it your birthday? Do tell, I'll be sure to give you a shoutout. ^~^**

 **Anywho, make sure to keep calm and breathe fire.**

 **-FireDragonPhia**


	3. Chapter 2: Freed

**Chapter 2**

 **Freed**

* * *

It was a quiet day as Lucy walked aimlessly through the market in town, her brown eyes alight with happiness. Somehow she had managed to get away from her fire dragon slayer and was able to get out to the town.

So far it was nice to have a little time to herself, even if it _did_ seem a little quiet.

"Lucy Heartfilia?"

The blonde was jarred from her thoughts as she spun around to see a familiar Runes mage. He held a paper bag full of groceries it seemed, a surprised look on his face.

"Hey Freed." She greeted with a smile, setting down the apple she had been holding. "This is like the first time I've seen you outside the guild, do you live around here?"

"Uh, no actually." He said sheepishly, using his free hand to run through his hair. "I saw that Natsu was alone with Happy so I figured that meant _you_ were alone so I came to find you." He said, glancing around. "I need to talk to you about something and Evergreen was saying that you had helped her so..."

"Oh of course!" Lucy said quickly, giving him a reassuring look. "Why don't we head back to my apartment so we can chat properly, hm?"

Naturally, the green haired male agreed, the two making small talk as they went back to the blonde's home. Lucy found was pleasently surprised to find that they shared a love of books, the two chatting about some of their favorites.

When the two made it to her home, the male set his groceries on the island of in her kitchen as she sat down at her table. He joined her a moment later, sitting in the seat across from her.

"Okay," She started, offering a smile to him. "what's up?"

"Well, um," He hesitated for a moment before just delving into his thoughts. "the other day I was just listening to this one thing on my radio lacrima, and there was this ad. It was about a contest where you submit a screenplay into this P.O. box and whoever submits the best screenplay gets a buttload of jewel."

Lucy raised an eyebrow as he pulled a stack of papers out of nowhere, sliding them over to the woman. She pursed her lips as she read the title of the paper, using all her willpower to not burst into laughter.

The title was, "Thunder God".

"I was wondering if you could read it over before I submitted it." He said, his voice hopeful. "Since you're an author as well, please feel free to make notes on things I could change."

"I'd love to." Lucy said, somehow keeping her voice level and steady. However, seeing a rare grin appear on his face seemed to make the ordeal much more enjoyable.

"Thank you so much!" He exclaimed, an idiotic smile taking over his face before he gained a more serious expression. "I would also appreciate it if you could keep this between us. I really don't want the others to know or they'll never leave me alone."

"Don't worry about it," Lucy stated with a wink. "I'll be sure to return it to you in the next few days." A relieved expression was on his face as he thanked her graciously again before grabbing his groceries and taking off.

Later that night as Lucy read it, she giggled at all the similarities that "Thunder God" had to Laxus. She also couldn't help but take note of how "Francine" was very similar to "Freed" in actions and interests.

"A screen play, huh?" She said under her breath, highlighting something. "More like fanfiction."

* * *

 **Hello again, humans.**

 **Freed is certainly an interesting guy. Honestly.**

 **This is a rather short one, but I just wanted to get one out before the New Year. Do you have any 'New Year resolutions'? Tell me in the reviews.**

 **Oh mine? Try to become a better writer. I stink at writing so hopefully this year I'll be able to fix it. It's hard to portray human emotions when you're a dragon.**

 **Plus I never get invited out anywhere. Something about burning crap down. Don't they know it's _just_ a social experiment?!**

 **Anywho, make sure to keep calm and breathe fire.**

 **Have a happy New Year, enjoy yourselves!**

 **-FireDragonPhia**


	4. Chapter 3: Laxus

**Chapter 3**

 **Laxus**

 ***A tad bit of swears in this one***

* * *

Laxus never ever thought he would be going there.

Not to blondie's home, not while the fire freak was most likely there, and _certainly_ not when Freed was watching.

But the thing was, he had a problem and he wanted to see if she could fix it. Everyone was always going to her with their problems, and he was sick of hearing them talk about her like she was a savior.

Now that he wasn't always wearing his headphones, he couldn't help but listen to his team talk about her. Evergreen and Freed spoke in hushed tones about how she had helped, and now he wanted a piece of it.

The massive male looked at the door in front of him with a grimace, reaching up and curling his hand into a fist.

He then knocked on the door as gently as he could...

Unfortunately, as 'gently as he could' caused his fist to sail through the door, creating a fist sized hole in it. Inside he heard a squeak of surprise, making him cringe.

Well... at least he knew she was home.

"Fuck a duck." He muttered, quickly retracting his hand. He could hear her footsteps on the floor, and he couldn't help the intense wave of fear that washed over him.

He could _feel_ her anger.

The door opened quickly and there stood the seething blonde. He cracked a small, albeit nervous, smirk, seeing her eye twitch.

"Lucy..." She said, the male's eyes widening. "KICK!"

The force of a thousand of Natsu's punches all compiled into one kick, sending him soaring through the roof of the apartment building. He heard blondie damning him to hell as he descended quickly back through the hole and slamming painfully against the floorboards. His face hurt like hell as he looked over to the door.

There stood the blonde with her arms crossed, doing positively _nothing_ to help him up. He groaned, shooting a glare at her that should have turned her to stone, but instead did nothing to help him. Instead, she returned the glare.

"What," She started, her voice cold as that stripper guy's ice. "on Mavis's green Earthland, do you want?"

"Uh..." He started, looking off to the side. "I have a problem."

She paused for a moment, closing her eyes for a couple long seconds before opening them. Suddenly she looked kind and thoughtful, a smile gracing her lips.

"Well if that's all, please come in." She said, her mood completely flipping. He was so surprised that he didn't even realize that she had sighed and started to drag him into her apartment.

Blondie brought him over to her table, gesturing for him to take the vacant seat as she went to sit on the seat across from him. He was surprised to see that the flame idiot wasn't there. She set her elbows on the table as he picked himself up off the floor and sat down in the seat he was offered.

Her eyes were suddenly locked onto his as she looked at him expectantly.

"Are you going to tell me, or are you going to just sit there?" She asked, causing the male to nod, muttering a half-hearted apology. He set hs elbows onto the table, clasping his fingers together and setting his chin atop of them.

"I want to be the new guild master." He said bluntly, noticing how blondie didn't so much as raise an eyebrow. "And my problem is that I don't know how to make Gramps trust me again and allow me to take over. I know he's getting older and pretty soon he'll have to pass the torch on to someone _._ I want it to be me."

Lucy nodded, leaning back in her chair and examining his face as he spoke.

He kept tapping his heel at a quick pace, probably not even noticing he was doing it. His eyebrows were scrunched and Lucy could tell that this was something that has been on his mind for a while. A very long while.

"I've been training a lot after Tartaros," He said, closing his eyes for a brief few seconds. "That wierd particle stuff is somehow attached to my magic now." Lucy's eyes widened at this. "I've learned how to control it and how to use it to my advantage." He opens his eyes to look at the blonde. "I know that I'm strong enough to become the next master."

"Becoming the master of Fairy Tail isn't just about strength." Lucy said, the male looking at her as she spoke. "Sure, that's a part of it, but it isn't just that. It's about protecting those closest to you, protecting your family no matter the costs. You have to be emotionally stable, you can't lose your head in certain scenarios, you can't act on an impulse or irrationality."

Their eyes met and for a brief moment Laxus could see the fire burning in her irises.

"I know you're strong and powerful, and I know Makarov is going to have to make a choice sometime soon." She leaned forward again, her gaze intense. "Remember a while ago, when he made Gildarts the master before he resigned?" The male nodded. "Let's think about him for a moment. Not only was he a powerful mage, he knew when a battle was worth fighting. He didn't let his pride take over and get himself killed fighting Acnologia. He came back to Fairy Tail because it was too tough for him to accomplish alone. That's hard to find in a person, and it's probably the reason Makarov chose him at that time."

Laxus looked to the floor of the blonde's apartment. He mulled over her words, hearing them repeat in his mind.

"I'm not saying that you have to go out on an incredibly dangerous mission, lose a few limbs and come back to prove yourself." Lucy said, leaning back again. "I'm just saying you need to show Makarov that you're level-headed, that you won't make decisions based on your pride. Back at the Fantasia parade all those years ago, you made that decision based on pride. You wanted to be seen as the one with all the power, you wanted people to fear Fairy Tail- and you. You have to prove to him that you're the right man for the job. Even now, after you've redeemed yourself after the battle of Fairy Tail. Show him how much you've grown as a mage and as a person who could one day lead Fairy Tail."

Laxus kept staring at the floor of her apartment before he lifted his head, taking a small breath.

"You're right." He said, standing up, he walked over to her door, opening his mouth to thank her but before he could she interrupted him.

"As for the trust issue," Lucy started, offering him a kind smile. "I don't think there's anyone in Fairy Tail he trusts more than you."

The blonde haired male's mouth dropped open, giving her a curt nod.

"Thank you." He said, leaving her apartment.

As she watched him go, she smiled gently to herself. However, it slipped off her face when she realized there was still a damn hole in her door.

"Shit." She muttered, gritting her teeth. "'Help him figure out how to become master,' my brain says. 'Oh but don't tell him to pay for the fucking door'!"

She marched around her apartment, fuming before she heard something that caused her heart to stop.

"Why is there a hole in the roof of m- HEARTFILIA!"

"Double shit."

* * *

 **Hello humans.**

 **So yeah, I just realized I haven't posted anything since last year! *buh dum tsss* So I found this and I was kinda like, 'okay let's do it.' and then this happened.**

 **I feel like Laxus is slightly OOC, but I honestly don't care. I tried my best... Plus I _didn't edit_.**

 **Happy New Year. Hope it was filled with magic and fire. I like fire.**

 **I hope I didn't disappoint, but if I did, please tell me in the reviews!**

 **Anywho, keep calm and breathe fire.**

 **-FireDragonPhia**


	5. Chapter 4: Jellal

**Chapter 4**

 **Jellal**

* * *

As Lucy opened her recently fixed apartment door, she nearly screamed.

 _Nearly._

On her couch sat the ever poised Jellal, his eyes directed straight ahead as he stared intently at the far wall. He didn't even stir when she closed her door, making sure to lock it and doing the same to her window.

Although _she_ knew he was a good guy, the rest of Fiore didn't exactly share her belief. She wouldn't allow him to get caught. Erza would never forgive her.

"Um..." The blonde started, seeing the male stiffen. "Jellal?" His head snapped over to her, causing her to let out a small yelp.

Lucy heard once that the eyes were the gateway to the soul. If that was the case here, he had a _serious_ issue to address.

"Lucy!" He said abruptly, his voice panicked as his eyes darted around wildly, as if afraid something would jump out at him. "You've _got_ to help me!"

"What?" The blonde responded, confusion clear on her face. "What happened? Why didn't you go to Erza?"

"Sh-She just laughed at me and made me come here!" He answered in his panicked voice. "Please! It's about Meredy!"

"What's wrong with Mere-" Before she could finish, he slapped his hands down on her shoulders, interrupting her.

"She's got this weird curse thing that Ultear used to help her get rid of every month, but now that she's gone she needs _my_ help and I can't do anything because I havenofuckingidea whatthefuckshe'stalkingaboutlikeIdon'tknowwhata-!"

"Jellal!" Lucy barked, making him snap his mouth shut and recoil slightly. He looked like a kicked puppy as she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. When she opened her eyes, she looked significantly more calm and collected, her brown eyes kind.

"Please slow down." Lucy said, her voice calm. "Now please tell me about this 'curse'."

"I-I think it's called a period." He said, his voice calmer but still having a hint of anxiety. Lucy however, was about to facepalm so hard, her unborn child who hasn't even been attempted to be made yet would feel.

"Ultear cured it with these things called 'tampons' and I have absolutely _no fucking idea_ what those are, and Meredy keeps asking me to get them!" He drew away from her, clasping his hands to the sides of his head. "What are tampons!? Will she die? OH SHIT WHAT IF SHE DIES?"

"Jellal." Lucy said with exasperation, the male looking to her. "Have you ever gotten _the talk_ from an adult about the female body?"

Immediately, his cheeks tinted a pink color as he shifted nervously on his feet.

"Well one time Erza showed me her-"

"Stop! Stop- just stop right there!" Lucy exclaimed, throwing her arms up and shaking her head wildly. "Do _not_ say anything more! Mavis, I do not need that mental image right now."

"Well _I_ thought it was wonderful."

"I didn't ask for your opinion, now did I?" Lucy ran a hand through her hair before something dawned on her. "Wait a minute, you and Erza are a thing?!"

"I thought we were always a thing." He said with slight confusion, making the Celestial Mage pause for a moment to think.

"Eh, true."

"But seriously, how do I cure her?" He asked, sounding slightly panicked again. "She got really mad at me for not bringing her these 'tampons' and some chocolate. What do I do?"

Lucy sighed, looking up to the ceiling of her apartment as if it would give her the answer. However, it was silent.

"Traitor." She whispered under her breath, the blue haired male assuming she was talking to the unseen force from above. She looked back to the tattooed man with a new resolve, knowing that one way or another he had to learn about it. Meredy surely wasn't going to talk to him about it, might as well be her.

"Alright, Jellal." She started, already knowing this would destroy all chances of them having a friendship in the future. "Let me tell you a little bit about something us women like to call shark week..."

* * *

Five and a half hours later, Jellal was staring at Lucy with a mixture of horror and newfound understanding.

"Oh my gods." He said quietly in a dramatic voice. "I am _so_ sorry."

"As you should be." Lucy said with equal drama. "This, my dear Jellal, is why the female species shall always be superior to the male specimen."

"I understand." He said with a serious nod, standing up to shake her hand. "Thank you, so much for opening my eyes."

"It was no problem," She said kindly, giving his hand a firm shake. "I hope you have all the knowledge you need now."

"I do." He said, pulling his hand away. "I will tell the tales of your wisdom!"

"Why thank you!" Lucy said, tears collecting in her eyes as she watched him clamber towards her window. "You were a brilliant student."

"Thank you." He said, tears shining in his eyes as well. "Thank you."

With that he leapt out of her window into the dead of night.

"Probably on his way to get tampons," Lucy said sweetly. "A brave soul indeed."

* * *

 **Hi Humans.**

 **Don't worry your little human brains, I'm alive.**

 **A commenter by the name of _Le Potato_** **inspired me to do this, so thank you and bless your soul Mr. Potato. (Evidentially my favorite food is potatoes, so you can only imagine my surprise.)**

 **Shit hit the fan in my real life so I apologize for that although I don't really have to. Also to the people who read the manga- [Internal Screaming]**

 **Thanks a bunch for reading and reviewing, I really do appreciate it.**

 **Anywho, remember to keep calm and breathe fire.**

 **-FireDragonPhia**


	6. Chapter 5: Levy

**Chapter 5**

 **Levy**

* * *

Lucy was having a great day.

She and Natsu had just gone out on a high paying job and somehow her partner managed to _not_ destroy anything! It was absolutely wonderful.

For once in her pathetic little life she got paid in _full_. It was a truly wonderful feeling and it even seemed that her dragon slayer was pleased with it as well. Happy was giving the pink haired male a strange look the whole time, not even teasing them about _'liiiiiiking_ ' each other.

It made her wonder what was going on, but the moment she got to her apartment, those thoughts dissipated.

"Lu-chan, I have a problem."

One of her closest friends, Levy, was in her room, nervously wringing out her hands as she looked to the celestial mage. Lucy saw a package sitting on her coffee table, her eyes widening as she looked at it.

"Sit down," She said, her voice serious as she reovered quickly from the shock. "Let's talk, alright?" Levy nodded shakily, her usually calm brown irises filled with worry and trepidation.

Lucy led her to the couch, the script mage staring blankly at the box of home pregnancy tests that sat on the coffee table just in front of them. The blonde grabbed her friend's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze as she took a small breath.

"Did you miss your period this month?" Lucy asked gently, the woman nodding to her.

"Y-Yeah," She said shakily, tears gathering in her eyes. "I've been feeling r-really neausous in the m-morning for the p-past week."

"Have you used one yet?" The blonde asked, looking down to the unopened box as Levy shook her head. "Have you... told Gajeel?"

"N-No, I wanted to c-come here first." She responded with a sniffle, her hand shaking as Lucy held onto it.

"That's alright," She answered soothingly, Levy sniffling again. "Do you want to go now?"

"I d-don't want to know." Levy said, her voice cracking. "Wh-What if I am? Then what? I certainly won't get rid of it and I'm not ready to be a-"

Lucy stopped her mid-sentence, pulling her in for a hug. The blue haired woman buried her face in her friend's shoulder, wrapping her arms around her in response.

"Don't say that." Lucy whispered, keeping her arms firmly around her. "I promise you everything is going to turn out fine. You're going to be alright." She pulled away slightly to look at her friend. "But first you have to take the test and we'll see what happens, okay?"

With a sort of numb nod, the woman grabbed the package and disappeared into the bathroom with it.

Lucy sat alone with her thoughts, wondering about her friend.

She and Gajeel had only been a couple for about ten months now (Right after Tartaros was defeated they decided to spill their feelings for each other). But she didn't expect this. Nothing close to it.

However, no matter the outcome, Gajeel wouldn't leave her. She knew that much.

Despite his 'bad boy' demeanor around everyone, he really truly loved Levy- even a blind man could see that. Her friend was in good hands, and if anything the iron dragon slayer would be thrilled.

After a few mlong minutes, her friend emerged from the bathroom. She was looking down at the pregnancy test with wide eyes, the blonde standing up.

"What does it say?" Lucy prompted quietly, tilting her head to the side.

"Positive." Levy breathed out, looking up to her friend before back down at the test. "Wh-What is Gajeel going to say? W-We're not ready to b-be parents, h-how..."

Lucy stepped forwards and wrapped her arms around the now shaking girl. She was clutching the test in her hand as tears silently traced down her cheeks, two thick, purple lines staring her back in the face.

"Everything is going to be alright." Lucy said reassuringly, giving her a gentle squeeze. "If there's anyone who can get through this, it's you Levy-chan." She pulled back to look into her friend's eyes. "I promise everything will be just fine."

Levy was about to say something before the blonde's door was suddenly knocked off its hinges, falling to the floor with a loud bang. Standing in the doorway was the script mage's boyfriend who's mouth dropped open as Lucy let out a defeated groan.

"B-But I _just_ fixed that in the last chapter!"

The blonde was promptly ignored as Gajeel stepped over the debris, the blonde tearing herself away to mourn over her door.

"Shrimp." He started gruffly, looking down at the test in her hand and back to her tear stained face. "Is this what you were so worked up about all week?"

"Y-Yeah," She said with a sniffle. "How could I _not_? Gajeel, I'm _pregnant._ Th-That means I'm going to be a M-Mom, and I do-don't think I ca-"

"Well that's why you have the Dad, ain't it?" He asked, interupting her as Lucy stopped her sulking to look at them. "'Cause the Mom can't do it on her own, so that's why there's a Dad. And I'm 'bout 100% sure that thing is mine."

"Y-You're not mad?" She asked, his arms snaking around her waist.

"How could I be mad?" He asked, sounding genuinely confused. "I mean, I'm not giving you up to anyone else, so I figured this would happen sooner or later."

"You've got to be kidding me." Levy murmured, the male shaking his head as a smirk snuck up on his lips.

"Nope. We're going to be the best parents in the guild." He said, lifting her up easily and ignoring her squeak of surprise and pressing his lips against hers softly. "We'll be even better than Salamander and Bunny-girl when they hook up."

Lucy's gaze snapped over to the two as he uttered those words, not able to muster up a response at Levy's tearful expression.

"I love you." Levy said before slamming her lips against his again. Gajeel responded just as enthusiastically, getting to the point where Lucy was getting very very very grossed out.

"Alright, that's enough!" Lucy barked, her two friends looking over to her with wide eyes. "Gods, go make twins somewhere else, _please!_ I _don't_ want to see that."

Levy flushed a deep crimson before Gajeel smirked, muttering something that sounded like, "You don't have to tell me twice," before running out the door. Levy shouted her thank you's even though Lucy hadn't really done much.

Lucy looked down at the destroyed door, sighing sadly as she nudged it with her foot.

"Well fuck." She muttered, running a hand through her hair. "There goes my rent money."

* * *

 **Hi humans.**

 **For my sister, GraePearl.**

 **I've got nothing.**

 **Yelp, remember to keep calm and breathe fire.**

 **-FireDragonPhia**


	7. Chapter 6: Cana

**Chapter Six**

 **Cana**

* * *

It was a beautiful Saturday morning for Lucy as she awoke- the birds were chirping, the sun was gently warming her exposed skin, there were two hands firmly grasping her breasts, Happy wasn't sitting-

Wait a minute.

The blonde shrieked very, _very_ loudly as she shot out of her bed, falling harshly off the side and hitting her head roughly on the floor. Her heart pounded as adreneline coursed through her, the mage scrambling to her feet.

However, the moment she saw who was occupying her bed, she facepalmed.

"Cana, what the actual fuck?" She muttered, watching as the brunette smiled slyly to her. It made her feel incredibly sick to see that smile, but she refused to break eye contact with the woman.

"Oh! That was a _naughty_ word, Lu!" She slurred, pulling a bottle of alcohol out of _literally_ nowhere. "No wonder Natsu won't date you."

"Would you shut up!?" Lucy shrieked once more, her cheeks warming up at the jest. "Why on Eathland are you ever here?"

At this, the drunkard went silent, a scowl marring her features as she thought of something obviously unpleasant.

"Okay... well you see... I kinda lost a bet and now I am faced with the biggest problem of my entire life." She revealed, the blonde sighing as she gestured over to her table. The woman followed her and sat down at one of the two vacant seats, the blonde taking the one across from her.

"Alright," Lucy started, leaning back in her chair. "How about you start from the beginning and we'll go from there."

Cana took a moment to gather her thoughts, taking a swig of her drink and setting it on the table beside her. She brushed her hair all over her left shoulder, leaning back in the seat and letting out a long, dramatic sigh.

"Well, here's how it went down," She said, glaring at Lucy's light fixture. "Gray bet me that if I could kiss Erza without getting hit by her he would buy me beer for the rest of the week. But if I _did_ get hit I would have to _give up_ beer for the rest of the week." She said, reaching up to scratch her head.

"So of course, I accepted and I smooched her right on the lips." The card mage said this with pride, the blonde fighting a smile as the brunette suddenly sagged in her seat. "But like two seconds after I did it, she screamed, 'My viriginity!' and sent me flying across the guild."

Lucy couldn't help the giggle that escaped her, the drunk glaring at her and making the blonde bite down on her lip.

"S-Sorry, continue." She prompted, the woman now focusing her glare on the blonde.

"Okay, long story short, I can't drink for an entire _week,_ and I need your help." She said, looking to her friend with a pleading glance in her eyes. "There will probably be lots of yelling and screaming and kicking-"

"Oh Mavis," Lucy muttered, being ignored by the woman.

"-and punching and denial and depression and tears." She ended her spiel there, though Lucy felt as though her soul would leave her body. "So I am asking as a fellow Fairy Tail member and as one of your closest colleagues- please help me through this."

Once her soul returned, Lucy took a deep breath, steeling herself for probably the worst decision she's ever made, and ever _will_ make.

"Sure, Cana." She said, watching as the brunette instantly relaxed. "I would love to help you. When do you have to start?"

"Tomorrow." She responded. "This calls for a drink!"

She then proceeded to down the rest of her alcohol and jump around the blonde's apartment because she was so _damn_ grateful for her _damn_ help.

It wasn't going to be easy, but Lucy would do it.

She would do it even if it killed her.

* * *

 _ **One Week Later...**_

Cana sat at the bar, drinking to her heart's content as she taunted the ice mage about how well she did.

Lucy, however, was not as thrilled.

Sitting next to her dragon slayer and his talking house pet, she leaned into his side, watching the drunkard with contempt.

"Never again." She whispered, a purple bruise standing out on her cheek and bags under both of her eyes. " _Never. Again._ "

"I agree," The pink haired male grunted, glaring at the brunette with her. Happy watched the two with a raised eyebrow, munching on his fish while he glanced at the object of their anger.

"I think you caught Lushee's weirdness, Nashoo," Happy said with his mouth full of fish. Neither of the mages paid him any mind, making the exceed sigh, shaking his furry head.

"Oh Lucy!" Cana called to the blonde, her head snapping to her and her neck cracking in a ickly way that did little to faze the card mage. "Thanks a bunch!" She tilted her head as a grin lit up her face, her cheeks flushed slightly from her intake of alcohol.

Lucy let out a small breath, offering a forced smile back to her friend.

"Anytime." She muttered. "Anytime."

* * *

 **Hi humans.**

 **Nice to be writing another one of these, I had a lot of fun with this one, I must say. I hope you enjoyed.**

 **Also, in my real life my school is doing the musical _Hairspray_ and I get to be Edna Turmblad (Tray's Mom, a.k.a John Travolta) So yeah, good for me.**

 **I hope you guys have a wonderful day, or night or afternoon or something.**

 **Anywho, remember to keep calm and breathe fire.**

 **-FireDragonPhia**


	8. Chapter 7: Macao

**Chapter Seven**

 **Macao**

* * *

"Please! I'm sorry for looking through your underwear!"

"You were not 'looking through my underwear', you were _smelling it_ you shit face!"

"You can't prove that!"

"Yes I can, I _watched_ you do it!"

"Whatever, like you don't go and smell Natsu's boxers."

"What the fuck, I don't do that!"

"Sure you don't. Now please just help me with my problem then I'll get out of your hair."

Lucy heaved a long sigh, rubbing her eyes with her palms as the old man looked to her with pleading eyes.

She really, really, really didn't want to help him, especially after what she caught him doing just moments ago. Macao was creepier than she previously thought him to be, and that was saying something. She liked to give people the benefit of the doubt, but it turned out that he was just as strange as everyone told her he was.

However, this didn't change the fact that it was practically impossible for her to deny a guildmate help. Damn her conscience, always fucking everything up!

"Fine." She agreed reluctantly, watching as his dark eyes lit up for a moment before she was adding, "But you have to give me my panties back or I won't help you."

His face dropped and he groaned. He dug into the pocket of his white coat, pulling out some pink panties (Those were her favorite pair! Now they were forever tainted by him, that prick!). Her eye twitched as he handed them over slowly, dropping them into her awaiting palm.

"Thank you." She grit out between clenched teeth, getting an annoyed grunt from the male. She shot him her meanest glare she could muster, feeling sweet satisfaction when he recoiled slightly.

After tossing her panties into her hamper, conveniently placed next to her dresser, she swung around to face the dark purple haired man.

"Alright, now that that's done, what can I help you with?" She asked, still a hint of annoyance in her tone, but not enough to make the male think twice about asking her for help.

"Well, as you know, Romeo and I don't exactly get along super well sometimes." He started off, reaching a hand up to scratch the side of his head absently. "And I just don't think that he realizes I only want what's best for him."

"Of course, that's understandable." Lucy said, the male looking at her as she smiled gently to him. "Romeo is just a teenager, you have to remember. He's probably going be rebellious and upset or angry with you randomly, but it's just nature."

"When does he stop being like this?" Macao asked with a long sigh. "It's annoying."

"Be patient and it'll be over soon." She assured, the man sighing heavily once again.

"Fine, I _guess._ " He started, pursing his lips. "Also, as kind of a side quest- how do I be cool?"

Lucy blinked at him, her eyebrows set in a hard line.

"Why?"

"Because I want to be cool. Or at least cooler than I am already."

"You are not cool. You are literally the opposite of cool."

"Then teach me!"

Macao looked at her with determination set in his irises, a groan of annoyance leaving her lips.

"Fuck it, why not?" She muttered mainly to herself, the male silently cheering as she uttered the words. She shot a bone chilling glare at him a moment later, making him shut his mouth abruptly.

"First and only rule to being cool. Do _not,_ under _any_ circumstance, go into a woman's dresser and _smell her panties._ "

"..."

"That's it. That's all you have to do to be cool."

"..."

Macao promptly, and silently, walked out of her apartment without another word. He didn't glance back and didn't even thank her. She huffed at the retreating male, seeing as he left through her fixed door.

She shook her head silently, walking over to her door and locking it. She also went over to her window, locking that as well and drawing the curtains.

Looking through her entire apartment, she made sure the pink haired dragon slayer was nowhere to be found before she walked over to her bookcase. She picked out a thicker book that had a lock on it, taking out a small key that was hidden under the book beside it.

Unlocking it, she opened up the book to reveal the hollowed out inside, smirking at her prize.

White boxers with little dragons scattered all around it.

* * *

 **Heyo humans.**

 **So yeah, Macao was just unaccepting of that rule and walked out. Also Lucy turned out to be just as pervy as the dude proclaimed her to be. I'm sorry I'm not sorry.**

 **How are all of you? I really do care, and I thank the Guest reviewer who left me with the suggestion with Macao. I was in the mood for some humor, so I thought, "Why not?" and this happened.**

 **In all honesty, my heart explodes when I see that people reviewed or favorited or followed my story. My poor dragon heart, it can't handle the kindness.**

 **Hopefully I won't take five fucking years to update, but we'll just have to see. OH YEAH. Expect there to be many swears in the future. I don't know why, but I think swearing is hilarious, so I apologize if you don't like that as much.**

 **As a side note- I just posted a new angsty oneshot called "Alone", so check it out if you have a chance.**

 **Anywho, remember to keep calm and breathe fire.**

 **(Have an awesome Easter! :U)**


	9. Chapter 8: Erza

_**Chapter Eight**_

 _ **Erza**_

* * *

"He ate it."

Lucy stared at her friend with a furrowed brow, confusion clear in her brown irises.

"Um, what?" Was the first intelligent thing that left Lucy's lips, her scarlet haired friend looking to her with the calmest eyes she had ever seen. Lucy stumbled back by the force of it, a shiver running down her spine.

"Your boyfriend. He ate it." She said, causing the blonde to become even more confused.

"Erza, you aren't making sense. I don't have a boyfriend." Lucy said stiffly, still rather perturbed at the sight of her friend's _calmness._ "And what did he supposedly eat, exactly?"

"Natsu. He ate my cake." Erza responded in monotone. "He destroyed it in the worst way possible, Lucy. He... He _digested it._ "

Lucy swallowed at the suddenly angered tone to her voice, her eyes narrowing into slits. She swore, she could _see_ the fire burning in her eyes, and it was so intense she was willing to let go of the fact that she called Natsu her boyfriend.

Not that she, uh, minded all that much.

"Erza," She started, knowing she was dealing with the devil. "Just stop right there, alright? You can't go killing people over eating your cake."

"Says who?" Was the nearly immediate response.

"Says pretty much everyone with morals." Lucy sighed, crossing her arms and trying her hardest to not flinch when her glare was suddenly directed at her.

"Are you insinuating I do not have morals?" She asked in dangerous tone. Lucy felt her bladder nearly give out, but she held strong, pretending that she was not terrified.

"No. I am saying that you can't kill people over cake!" She denied, shaking her head. "You can always get another piece, Erza. If you tell Mira what happened, I'm sure she'd give you another one."

At this, Lucy saw all anger leave her eyes, the redhead blinking as though she hadn't thought of that as a possibility. The blonde couldn't help but facepalm, shaking her head as the requip mage composed herself.

"As yes." She spoke, clearing her throat as her cheeks turned a light hue of pink. "You are correct. I suppose I shouldn't have... been so impulsive." She looked fiercely to the celestial mage, her eyes alight with seriousness. "You may strike me for being such an ignoramus!" She fell onto one knee, ducking her head and Lucy sighed.

"There's no need for that, just go get your cake." Lucy said with mild amusement. The woman looked up and nodded with a sudden sparkle in her eyes and rose, walking out of Lucy's apartment swiftly and was surely making her way to the guild hall.

With a shake of her head, Lucy went over to her window and watched her friend march through the streets happily. She giggled at the sight before turning back around and heading over to her bookcase to choose a book to read.

(What she didn't know was that Natsu made the same mistake twice, bless his heart, and was sent to the infirmary after Erza was finished with him.)

* * *

 **Hello.**

 **My bad for the amazingly late updates. I am not good at this whatsoever. School just let out for me on Thursday and I am in another musical, The Little Mermaid, so that is eating up like _all_ of my time and I am very tired. But other than that, I am insanesly excited because I will get to write more, hoorah!**

 **This chapter was inspired by TheCheeseyCheeser, so thank you very much for the suggestion!**

 **I hope you all are doing well! Thank you so much for the nice comments and favs/follows!**

 **Loved it? Hated it? Tell me in the comments, I'm all for the criticism. Thank.**

 **Anywho, make sure to keep calm and breathe fire.**

 **-FireDragonPhia**


	10. Chapter 9: Gajeel

**_Chapter Nine_**

 ** _Gajeel_**

 ** _:")_**

* * *

Gajeel walked through the town of Magnolia, on his way to a certain Bunny-girl's home.

His shrimp was currently asleep as he walked from their small house- well, it had actually been his, but ever since they confirmed with Porlyusica that they were having twins, it became _theirs_ -over into town. There was just a thought that had been plaguing his mind that he couldn't get rid of and it was effecting him greatly.

Usually he would talk to his future wife about something like this… but he didn't want to freak her out. She was already on edge, worrying constantly about their unborn baby shrimps. And with this problem, he knew she would start to freak the fuck out if he ever told her.

So he was going to the next best person. Bunny-girl.

Whenever shrimp had a problem she _always_ went to her apartment building. It was stupid really, but at least she always came back with that adorable smile on her face…

He nearly face palmed. If anyone in the guild knew he had thoughts like those he would be teased endlessly. But he figured that _everyone_ thought she was adorable. It was hard not to. Everything about her was adorable.

Before he let his thoughts be completely taken over by his shrimp, he suddenly found himself in front of her fated apartment. He grimaced as he entered the building, walking up the staircase to her door.

The dragon slayer realized with a disgusted cringe that the Salamander's scent was faintly noticeable and shook his head. He had already done _that_ now had he? Hadn't even confessed his love to her and he was already spreading his scent around like he had.

He took another moment to make sure the fire breathing idiot wasn't within her apartment before knocking. He made extra sure to be careful- not wanting to destroy her door like he had accidentally done before.

It took a few moments before he heard hesitant steps coming towards the door. He silently berated himself for coming so early in the morning- on a _Sunday_ of all days (the sun wasn't even up yet!) -but at this point it was too late to ditch her.

The door cracked open a moment later to reveal the blonde mage, the woman sighing with some sort of relief before opening it wider. She smiled at him and gestured for him to enter, and was somewhat glad for the lack of commentary.

"Do you need some coffee?" She asked, the male shaking his head. "I'm going to grab some for myself, why don't you take a seat at the table."

"Uh, thanks." He said, realizing with a start that she looked absolutely exhausted. In fact, she had been looking that way for a couple days now- even going as far as to not show up at the guild. He remembered how upset his fellow dragon slayer was because of her absence, and his blue cat had felt the same. Hell, even Levy was a little worried.

And by a little, he meant a lot. Her emotions got out of control because of all her damn hormones.

Now that he was in her apartment, he was able to grab some more intel, though he didn't like what he found. Not at all. There were clothes strewn across the floor, as if she had thrown them there and didn't bother to pick them up- definitely not the work of Salamander. There were shards of glass sitting in the corner of her room, and if he didn't have his advanced sight, he was sure he would've missed the detail. Had she been throwing glasses over there? It certainly seemed like she had, and the small dent in her wall only seemed to solidify that guess.

He glanced over to the woman in question, his eyes ghosting over her figure. She had become thinner, he could tell. She must not have been eating very much the past few days. Another thing that was very much not good.

Had Salamander seen all this? No… then he would never leave her alone, that was for sure. Salamander knew Bunny-girl better than anyone, leaving her alone when she was so obviously upset wasn't like him.

That meant he had no idea and she had no one helping _her_.

She must be a better actress than he thought. To hide all of this from Salamander.

Bunny-girl turned back around with some coffee in a mug, a pleasant smile pulling at the corners of her lips, as if nothing was wrong in the world. She headed over to her table where the male was sitting, sliding into the chair across from him.

"So, Gajeel." She started, capturing his attention with how hoarse her voice was- like she had been crying. "What can I do for you? It must be pretty important seeing how early you came here."

"Shrimp's asleep," He said absently, his sharp eyes focusing in on the fact that her eyes darted around her room. "Thought I'd come by and talk to you. I've been thinking about something recently and I didn't want to freak her out."

"Oh," She responded, taking a sip of her coffee as her eyes narrowed in concern. "Of course, I know she can blow things out of proportion a little bit when she's pregnant. What is it that's bothering you?"

"Well it's just… I…" He didn't know exactly how to phrase his concerns, especially now that he realized she had her own problems she needed to address. His mind reeled for a moment and he debated whether or not to tell her. She looked as though she were struggling with her own demons- did he want to add to her problems?

"Gajeel." Her voice brought him back and he found himself staring into her eyes that were filled with an understanding that she seemed to use a lot on the others. "I know that you've noticed a lot of things in here, but I'm alright. I just haven't cleaned up in a while. I love to help everyone out so there's nothing to worry about anyway. It's okay to tell me whatever it is that's bothering you."

He nodded at her, still not entirely convinced but not wanting to make her feel bad.

"Okay…" He started, seeing something like relief flash in her eyes for a moment before he spoke. "I just…" He took a deep breath to steel himself for his next words, knowing it was now or never. "For the past few weeks I've been getting nightmares of me dying." Lucy's lips parted and he continued. "And I've been keeping them from Levy 'cause I don't want to scare her. For some reason... I feel like I'm going to die. Like it'll really happen." He paused at her calculating look, and he waited a moment.

"Are you afraid?" She asked solemnly, looking up at him with a serious look.

"Yes. Terrified." He found himself saying, quickly shutting his mouth before sighing at the impassive look on her face. "I don't want to die. I don't want to leave Levy all alone with our children. I don't want them to grow up without me there to protect them. I can't leave them." He felt something odd about this whole conversation. He wasn't usually one to go around talking about things like this- at least not with anyone other than his shrimp. But for some reason, this felt alright- to share this with her.

They had been growing closer, now that he thought about it, in the few months that he and shrimp found out about the twins. Bunny-girl had helped him a lot with finding out about his new responsibilities and also with shrimp- something he was actually grateful about. The two of them had been panicking, and the blondie had pretty much taken them both under her wing. She was almost like a younger sister to him now. Almost a little like Juvia.

"That's perfectly normal," She responded, taking him by surprise with how… understanding she seemed to be about this. "It's okay to be afraid of death; you have a lot to lose- but that's what keeps you from going around and doing something stupid. If everyone had no fear of death, there wouldn't be limits for them and everyone has limits. For example- they would go out on a job that's much too difficult and get themselves killed over something that could've been easily preventable." It was almost scary, he thought absently, at how she knew exactly what to say. Like she was naturally gifted at handling things like this. It made him wonder about how many others had the same problem as he did, but he didn't dwell too long on that thought.

"You're very smart, Gajeel. I really don't think anything or anyone could kill you. Levy tells me a lot about how observant and careful you are. Besides, with a woman like that by your side…"

"Yeah, she's amazing." He said, a rare smile sneaking onto his lips. Lucy smirked at him as he shook his head, looking away as heat crawled up his neck.

"As for your nightmares, I think that perhaps you were worrying about this subject so much, your mind created scenarios in which you _did_ die and played them in your mind while you slept." She paused for a moment. "Do you wake up because of the nightmares or do you just remember them in the morning?" He murmured in agreement to the former choice. "What do you do when they wake you up?"

"Well… I never wanna worry shrimp so I usually just go for a run or something and get everything out of my system." He said, wondering where she was going with this. "Why?"

"I suggest that you tell Levy about them." She responded. "You don't have to tell her what they're about, but she can help you. Sticking close to her is the way to go, I read somewhere that it eases your mind a lot quicker to be closer to the one you love. Besides, she really loves it when you cuddle her, and she will love it even more to know she's comforting you. Her pregnancy hormones will make her very happy if she knows she's helping you." She smiled as he nodded, seeming to take her advice to heart.

"That makes me feel a lot better." He said honestly, standing up abruptly and stretching out his sore limbs as Bunny-girl took another long sip of coffee. He watched her nose scrunch up, confusion settling into his mind. It almost looked as though she were in pain, but then in an afterthought he thought that her coffee might've been just a little too cold.

"It's what I'm here for." She said with a kind smile- though he was left wondering if he had just imagined the tenseness in her voice -standing up and walking over to her sink to pour out her coffee. "And Gajeel," The dragon slayer turned to her and he saw the worry in her irises, the thoughts from before being washed away at the look. "I'm always here to talk if you ever need me. Don't be afraid to ask for help from Levy too."

"Yeah… thank you, Lucy." He said with a small smirk, the girl nodding as he made his way to her door. Light was now beginning to stream in through her window and something in his mind told him to hurry up and get back to shrimp. There was no doubt she'd be waking up soon- maybe he should stop by that one bakery and get her some cake? She seemed to like cake a lot, but it _had_ to be chocolate or she wouldn't even so much as glance at it.

Just as he opened her door, a thought occurred to him.

"Bunny-girl." The blonde turned to him, sensing the small change in his tone. "If you don't come to the guildhall, I'll tell Salamander he needs to come have a look at ya." Even if she did show up, he would tell him to keep a closer eye on her. That idiot.

"Why would he need to? Today's cleaning day." She said with a smile that seemed sincere and almost apologetic. He hoped silently that she would get out of whatever funk she was in, and by the look in her eyes, he knew that she would.

"Good. Kinda sucks not having you around at the guild. Shrimp's worried." He turned his back on her and walked out as he heard her reply.

"Tell her to stop, it's not good for the babies!" He could practically hear her smile as he shut her door, heading back out and breaking out into a run towards the bakery, his worries lifted from his mind and the feeling of ease settling back in. He smirked as he ran down the street, a new resolve settling in his mind.

He wouldn't let anyone take him away from his Levy. That was a promise.

* * *

It was only mere seconds after he left and Lucy fell to her knees with a pained groan, cradling her right arm against her chest. She froze for a moment, praying the iron dragon slayer hadn't heard her before she let out a small sigh of relief.

Pain exploded in her arm a moment later and she gasped, her eyes widening as she slapped a hand over her mouth to keep herself from screaming out in agony. She bit down on her finger to try and distract herself from the agonizing pain in her body- but it did little to help. She shut her eyes tightly, panting as she struggled to take in breaths, her left hand reaching blindly for the thick leather bracelet tied around her right wrist.

With shaking fingers she tightened it, the pain immediately dissipating and causing her to suck in several deep, greedy breaths. She fell onto her hands and knees, exhaustion taking over her body.

Her eyes slipped shut, and she hoped to whoever it was watching over Earthland, that Gajeel would keep his mouth shut. She could only be so convincing, and with her magic acting up the way it was especially because of _that_...

It wasn't supposed to... it's not...

She couldn't have anyone knowing about this.

Not Natsu. Not Happy. Not the master. No one.

No one could know about the-

Her world went black.

* * *

 _ **Heh heh.**_

 **Also for those worried- I won't spoil the newest chapter for you but I have my reaction to it because I need to share it with those who understand.**

 **So I read the newest chapter and I cried for like five minutes. That's probably nothing compared to some of you but I almost never cry, you feel me? So that hit me really really hard, and I wrote this. (I really want to know your reactions to the chapter, so please share in the comments!)**

 **It's like 11 o'clock at night for me and I am tired af since I just got back from my musical practice so I apologize for any mistakes in this.**

 **Also new Lucy angst! I have actually been thinking of adding this little sub plot to the non existent plot for a while now, so I'm going for it. I haven't had much time for angst and I _love_ me some good angst. And for you none believers, I already know what the thing is that no one is allowed to know about so HAH.**

 **Just so you guys all know, my heart like melts every time I see a new comment. Good or bad, I love it all the same and I love yoooou all the same. OH MUSHHYNESSS! XD**

 **Thank you peeps too for the suggestions- I am still trying to decide what to do next and those really help get my brain turning for ideas.**

 **Anywho, I need to sleep so have a nice night or day or afternoon or quarter to noon or dawn or whatever time it is for you.**

 **Remember to keep calm and breathe fire.**

 **-FireDragonPhia**


	11. Chapter 10: Makarov

_**Chapter Ten**_

 _ **Makarov**_

* * *

Makarov wondered often if he should just retire.

When you were getting to be his age, it just seemed logical. He didn't move like he used to, he certainly didn't have anymore patience for Natsu, he didn't want to deal with any stupid paperwork the council threw at him- and overall he was just 110% done.

But the thing was, he had absolutely _no idea_ who he wanted as the next Master.

A major problem.

It wasn't like he could force someone to become the next Master, no matter how tempting that sounded. He just knew that it was time for a new leader, he just didn't know who that would be… yet.

So, instead of coming to this decision on his own, he called out to Mira and left the guild, on his way to Lucy's home. She would know what to do.

The celestial mage was famous in the guild gossip for solving pretty much everyone's problems. He remembered Gajeel had even admitted to going to her apartment only one week prior, though he didn't reveal anything about his problem. He didn't even tell _Levy_.

Secrecy appeared to be very important when it came to Lucy solving these problems, he discovered. Everyone said that they went over to her apartment and she helped them, but never has it been revealed what their actual dilemma was. It was so strange, but he supposed that his children would need at least _some_ privacy from the guild.

Walking down Strawberry Street, he made his way to the famous apartment, smiling up appreciatively at it. It almost came as a surprise to himself that he had never visited her for one of his other problems.

*cough cough* _Natsu_. *cough*

Going in through the front doors, he walked up the staircase that led to her apartment and took a steadying breath. He knocked on the door very carefully (he did not want to end up like his grandson- that was for sure).

It opened after a long moment, the blonde glancing around with confusion before Makarov cleared his throat and she turned her gaze down to his.

"Oh, hello Master." She greeted with a smile, the male taken back for a moment. There were almost unnoticeable dark circles under her eyes, like she had put makeup over them.

Had she always looked so tired?

"What can I do for you?" She asked, the old man shaking his head to focus on her. "It must be important since you came all the way out here." He tried hard not to point out the underlying tone of nervousness in her voice. It wasn't very prominent, but it was enough for him to notice it.

"I just wanted to come visit you because I have a slight problem." He responded, watching as relief flooded her eyes. "Word is, you can most likely help me with it."

"Of course," She said with a nod, stepping aside and allowing him room to step in. "Please come in! I just finished making some tea. Would you care for some?"

"If you wouldn't mind, I'll take a cup." He answered, stepping in through the threshold of her apartment. She disappeared to her kitchen as he closed the door behind him, taking a moment to glance around her room.

It was clean- as he expected from her. It looked as though she had spent a very long time trying to make it perfect. Though he heard from Happy that Natsu took about two minutes to mess it all up.

He laughed to himself as he walked over to her table, hopping up on her chair and frowning at how he hardly was able to see the top of it. He sighed and just hopped up onto the wooden surface, seating himself down and shrugging.

She could deal with it.

Looking over to the woman, he watched her pour their tea with careful movements, probably not wanting to spill anything. His eyes narrowed, however, on her wrist. He felt confusion sweep over him as he studied the thick, most likely leather, band around her right wrist. Immediate familiarity flooded his mind. He had definitely seen it before- but where?

"Do you want any sugar?" The blonde asked, looking over her shoulder at him and jarring him from his thoughts.

"No, that's alright." He said, watching as she shrugged, bringing his drink over to him. He thanked her as he took a sip of the tea, nodding appreciatively at the flavoring.

"So what's been bothering you?" She asked, the old mage looking to her as the thoughts about her bracelet were pushed to the back of his mind.

"Nothing too serious." He replied. "I just have a problem with who I should choose as the next master." She nearly choked on her tea, coughing and setting the cup down on the table as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

"Yup," She muttered sarcastically. "That's not serious at all."

"You try being Master for like a hundred years and then fail on several occasions to pass it off to someone new, then you can tell me how serious it is to you." He replied snarkily, taking another long sip of tea. Lucy giggled to herself and he didn't miss the way she stopped abruptly, as if it hurt to laugh.

"Yes, I suppose you're right." She said, suddenly smiling kindly to him and any traces of pain gone. "To you have any candidates?"

"Yeah. I have the natural ones- Laxus and Erza, but then I was also thinking perhaps Gray, Cana or you." He said, watching as her eyes widened and her cheeks flushed with red.

"Wh-What?" The panic that she displayed was almost funny. "I-I would be an awful ch-choice! You can r-rule me out right away!"

"Why? You have shown time and time again that you love Fairy Tail more than anything else in the world. Besides that, you've grown so much with your magic and your team is especially proud of you." He paused when she shifted nervously in her seat. He watched as her hand shot over to the bracelet around her wrist, and again, he couldn't help but think of how familiar that was to him.

All he could seem to remember was that it didn't belong anywhere near her.

"I'm not the person you're looking for, I don't think." She said, cheeks still slightly rosy than anything. "Thank you for the consideration, but I don't believe I'm ready for it."

He studied her for a moment, watching as her eyes flashed with something he couldn't decipher before he sighed.

"Fine, alright." He relented, watching as she visibly relaxed, though her hand still remained firmly around her wrist. "Then who would you suggest?"

"If I was being honest, Laxus." She responded with a shrug. "I think it's between him and Gray." She continued, leaning back in her seat. "Erza and Cana are both very good candidates, but after being with them for these past few years, I've discovered that they are a bit… impulsive. Cana is a great leader when she needs to be, but I don't think she would handle government officials, like the council, very well. Erza on the other hand, she'd be really good at that, but you've seen how she acts sometimes. She's easily offended, and her anger can get the best of her and lead to bigger problems."

"Hm." Makarov murmured, looking to the blonde thoughtfully. She noticed things a lot of others would miss- like Gajeel, but to a lesser extent -and it was true what Team Natsu said about her. She was _incredibly_ smart, no doubt, but unfortunately she never got to show it too much. She didn't have much confidence in herself, but always pulled through for them in the end. That was why she was one of his first choices in deciding who he wanted to take over his spot after he retired. It truly was a shame she didn't want to be the Master.

"I think you're right about those things." He said with a nod, sighing to himself. "What sets Gray and Laxus apart, though?" Maybe she could offer him some intel on both of them? She most likely had gotten one-on-one time with both of them, so maybe she could actually tell him something he didn't already know.

"Gray and Laxus are similar in some ways." She started slowly, seeming to collect her thoughts as she spoke. "They both are calm, they think things through and they certainly aren't impulsive- though they do have their moments. And when you're in Fairy Tail, when don't you ya' know?" She pursed her lips before speaking. "You can tell- especially nowadays -that Laxus has changed. He's no longer that arrogant boy from way back from Fantasia. He loves Fairy Tail a lot, and anyone can tell he just wants to protect everyone. He's smart too, something that really got to shine in Tartarus.

"Gray is somewhat the same." She continued. "Only I don't think he was ever really arrogant- in fact, I think he was the opposite. Even now, he's not completely sure of his skill, but I know he wouldn't hesitate to protect the guild from harm." The blonde looked up to her ceiling and Makarov listened as she added an afterthought. "Although, he can come off as rather… rude sometimes. If he doesn't like someone he won't be afraid to show it, and I seriously doubt that council officials will appreciate his stripping habit."

"I have to agree." The old man nodded, blinking a few times as he took another sip of tea. He replayed some of her information in his head, thinking over some things in a comforting silence. Lucy had taken to drinking her own tea as she waited for him to finish, closing her eyes in the process.

"So… Laxus." He said after a few long moments.

"Laxus." She responded with a nod, opening her eyes. "Are you finished with your tea? I can take it for you." He shrugged and she took away the nearly empty cup, standing and heading over to her sink.

He watched her as she placed the cups in the sink, an easygoing look on her face.

In a split moment, it was gone.

The blonde crumpled to the floor with yell of pain, Makarov's eyes widening with alarm.

"Lucy!" He called out to her, hopping off the table and rushing to her side as she grasped either side of her head. She screamed in agony as her back arched, the male feeling helpless as she writhed on the floor.

He watched as black vein-like lines stemmed from her bracelet, crawling up her arm. He suddenly felt sick, realizing where he had seen it and began moving very quickly. She was breathing heavily, groaning as her eyes shut tightly, looking paler than he thought was possible.

Moving quickly, he knew he had to something- _anything_ -to ease her pain. Even if it wouldn't go away completely, at least he could ease it.

Placing a hand on her forehead, he muttered a quick incantation under his breath, his hand glowing a faint blue. When he did, she shut her eyes tightly, letting out a shuddering breath of relief. A bead of sweat dripped down her forehead and he pulled away, worry clear in his gaze as she slowly began to breath normally.

The veins on her arm receded slowly, and he noticed they pulsed as they disappeared, her face contorting when they did.

The old man realized that his heart was pounding out of alarm, his eyes locking with hers as she struggled to sit up. He helped her and she leaned against her cabinets, the male shaking his head once he knew she was alright. There was a long tense silence before he finally broke it, speaking.

"How long?" He asked firmly, his tone holding no room for argument. She broke eye contact and her jaw clenched, his heart dropping to the pit of his stomach.

"Just this month." She responded, reaching for her wrist and rubbing it. "But I've had this for about a little over a year." He shook his head more, closing his eyes and heaving a long sigh even as surprise overtook him.

That bracelet she was wearing… she must have gone through a lot to have obtained it. They were extremely rare, there were only three in the entire world- she must have been insanely desperate to get one.

"Does anyone else know? Does Natsu?" He asked, still not looking at her. It was a dumb question. Natsu would probably be the first one she t-

"No. He doesn't know." This made his head snap up.

"Oh my gods." He murmured, his eyes wide. "How bad is it? Don't lie to me either."

She was silent for what seemed like forever, but the next words she spoke made his blood run cold. It made him selfishly wish that she had continued to lie to his face, it made him prefer silence over any speech.

"My body… it can't handle much more stress. I only have a month."

* * *

 _ **Uh, hi.**_

 **Well so much for having time to write and crap this summer. My bad.**

 **Sorry I've been gone for a very long time, and I've only just recently discovered time to finally write something down on a doc and then post it. I'm hoping you won't have to wait too long for the next chapter- I actually am almost done with it. That's when I really start to explain what's up with Lucy and shtuff like that.**

 **I've just finished up with my musical I was in, so hopefully I can get more stuff out for all of you. Also, I can finally maybe start paying attention to people I have kinda ignored... *nervous laughter*.**

 **So anyway. Lucy is going to die in a month? Whaaaaaaaat? Any theories or just confusions? You can comment your concerns! And really- thank you guys so so so much for all the comments and favs and follows. They mean the world to me and I love you all! *kiss kiss***

 **Again, sorry for the delay, and I hope you all have an amazing day! For my fellow Americans, happy fourth of July!**

 **God bless aaaaaaaaaaaaaand I am going to go take a nap now.**

 **-FireDragonPhia**


	12. Chapter 11: Porlyusica

_**Chapter Eleven**_

 _ **Porlyusica**_

* * *

If there was one thing Porlyusica hated, it was humans.

Now it wasn't like this was surprising or new or anything- it had been this way her entire life. She just hated humans.

Humans were always causing so many problems- problems _someone_ had to fix. More often than not, they dragged others down with them, sometimes unknowingly but that was beside the point. They hurt people with their own selfish actions, and she wouldn't stand for it.

Why she became a healer… she honestly had no idea. She supposed that she might as well help them figure out how to live properly.

But when Makarov brought her the blonde, she was tempted to not help her.

This woman was most certainly an idiot. She could tell. Her shoulders were hunched as she walked through her door, using a grown Makarov as something to lean on, her eyes clouded over with shame and exhaustion. She could tell right then and there, she had done something stupid and now she had to fix it. Pathetic.

"What do you want?" She asked bitterly, her red eyes narrowing on the blonde. She didn't miss the way her legs wobbled, having trouble keeping herself up. She eyed the rest of her before her eyes landed on the bracelet around her wrist, her lips parting in surprise as she looked to her old friend for clarification. How had she gotten her hands on _that_?

"You need to help her." The old man spoke, silent panic in his words. "I couldn't bring her back to the guild for reasons you've already noticed." The blonde looked back up to her with shame and the old woman shook her head.

"Sit down." She commanded, deciding to take pity on the woman. Not because she cared, but because she could take someone else down with her.

"Start from the beginning. I need to know everything, starting with whatever new power you're trying to keep locked up with that." She said, gesturing lazily to the bracelet. She must have been desperate to go after one of the three bracelets of interiority. It was practically a relic at this point, the mage who designed it long ago had only made three- he had died after creating them since it drained so much of his life force. The fact that she had went out and found one was actually quite extraordinary, but she knew the implications. She had no time to be 'amazed' with her.

The bracelet was created to keep bad magic trapped within a mage- most commonly some kind of dark magic that didn't belong in a mage such as herself. It was also meant to neutralize the magic over time, in the last recorded case it had taken only two weeks, but that didn't seem to be the case here. It seemed to be far from it, actually.

The blonde woman sat down on one of her chairs, her tire showing through clearly on her face. She wondered how long she had had the bracelet to be showing these kinds of symptoms. Wanting to take notes, she grabbed her notebook and found her quill pen, looking to her to signal for her to begin talking.

"Before I start I just want to say, I'm sorry." She said quickly, bowing her head and refusing to look up. "I shouldn't have kept this to myself for so long, and I shouldn't have withheld this information…" Porlyusica glanced over at the male beside her, her brow furrowing as she took a steadying breath.

"This all started just after Tartaros ended." She sighed, still keeping her gaze on the floor. "Everything was going fine. We were getting the guildhall rebuilt, we were celebrating our win- everyone was learning to cope over their losses, going to each other for help." She paused for a moment. "But once that short period passed, everyone was just kinda overjoyed, I suppose. We had all somehow survived and we were going to move on with our lives- together.

"However, I was still a little… for lack of better words, messed up in the mind." She said, flicking her wrist in exaggeration. "I think I did an okay job at hiding it, but I was power hungry. After losing Aquarius, I went sorta crazy with my training schedule. You might remember, actually."

Porlyusica looked over to her old friend, watching him nod with a little tinge of sadness in his eyes. It seemed he did remember- but the healer hadn't been there. She needed a little bit more context for her to understand.

"You disappeared for an entire week." He recalled, wistfulness in his voice. "Not even Natsu knew where you went, and when you came back…"

"I was different when I came back." She nodded to him. "That's when everything changed… something happened in the absence, and I didn't tell anyone about it." She shook her head to herself in regret. "That's what set everything off." A slight bitterness snuck into her tone that the healer nearly missed. She wrote down a quick note before glancing up at the blonde, giving her a look that told her to continue.

"I had been training with my spirits on one of the days," She said, suddenly looking paler than she had before. "Everything was going alright- normally. But even now, I still have trouble remembering…" She looked up to them. " _He_ appeared. Zeref." There was a beat of silence before the words sunk in.

"What!?" Makarov nearly leaped out of his seat as the pink haired woman looked at the younger mage in shock. "Lucy, this is incredibly serious! How could you not tell us about this!?" The blonde shrunk back, dropping her gaze to the floor.

"When he appeared, all of my magic was sapped from me. He had forced me down onto my knees." She continued as if she hadn't heard the old man. He settled himself back in his seat, anger radiating off of him as he forced himself to be quiet for the woman.

"I couldn't do anything, I could only watch as he approached me. I didn't have the strength to get up." She took in a small breath. "He started talking to me, as if we were old friends rather than enemies. He told me that I had taken someone from him, even though he never said _who_." She shook her head, obviously troubled by that fact. "He told me that I had to die because of it. He said that when I was dead, he'd 'get him back'." She wrapped her arms around herself, looking at the floor blankly. The two others were now staring at her in shocked silence, not really knowing what to say.

"But he didn't attack me after that. He just kept on talking." She said, glancing up at the two. "He said, 'he'll betray you all' and 'as soon as you're dead he'll come back to me' and shit like that. He sounded insane, he completely lost it." She swallowed. "And then he attacked me." She paused to draw in a breath. "His magic… it's so disgusting. He tried to suffocate me with it and he forced it to thread into my own magic.

"But luckily my spirits saved me." She said with a hint of fondness that disappeared in the next phrase. "They got the Spirit King and they all broke the connection and chased him away and I haven't seen him since." Lucy seemed to force a small smile for them before it dropped back into a frown.

"However, after about a week, I realized some changes." She continued, pointedly looking away from them. "I was starting to lose control of my magic and sometimes, the things around me just… died." She bit the inside of her cheek. "Luckily it was only flowers or smaller plants and not people. So I left later that week to figure stuff out. I told everyone I was going to visit my parents' graves, but I was really out doing some tests up at the Snakeroot Mountain range."

"All the way out there?" Makarov asked, the blonde nodding.

"I wanted to make sure that I wouldn't be around people." She responded before clearing her throat. "I really wanted to believe it wasn't what I thought it was, but unfortunately it is." Lucy leaned back in her seat. "The Ankhseram curse had been transferred to me, but on a significantly smaller scale. I'm not immortal, and only the small things around me die, but it didn't seem to affect any humans thankfully."

Makarov was staring at the woman with large eyes, his only expression being his one of shock and concern. Even Porlyusica was a little shaken. She didn't think that was possible but then again… she _was_ apart of Fairy Tail.

"I've deduced that some of his magic had integrated into my body during our brief connection. Once I figured this out, I knew I had to find some way of getting it out of my system, it was just too dangerous." She paused, looking back to the two. "And then I remembered something. Magic bracelets created by a great wizard from long ago- a mage who had given his life to make them. The bracelets of interiority.

"I found the book were the information was and I took off to find them." Lucy nodded to herself. "I took every single relic retrieving job I could find with Team Natsu, and before we left each time I would volunteer to go back to the client to get our money. Then I would ask them if they knew anything about any of the bracelets, and more often than not, they told me it was a myth. But I had finally gotten lucky one day and the client told me my first lead." She let out a small breath. "By that time, the curse had gotten stronger. I was becoming more desperate to find the bracelet and adding onto that, my thoughts had become darker." She shifted uncomfortably and the two mages watched as she took a steeling breath.

"It was like someone was talking to me in my own mind, controlling what I thought." Her hands were clasped so tightly her knuckles had turned white. "I always snapped out of it, but sometimes I just got this horrible urge to something awful. I couldn't be around anyone- not even Natsu. When I still was coherent enough to think on my own I would lock myself in my room, and I made sure to make it so I couldn't get out." She swallowed thickly. "I would get the _need_ to kill, destroy something or take over the world or some stupid thing like that.

"But luckily, I found the bracelet soon after. It was in this weird ruins, that guy I had asked was right. After I started to wear it, I realized the effects of the curse had been terminated, like it was never there in the first place." She smiled without the usual brightness as she continued. "I thought it was over. That now that I had this," She moved her arm to show the leather bracelet. "I could finally maybe move on with my life without it becoming a problem." Her smile dropped. "But I was wrong.

"It did trap the magic within me, but it couldn't neutralize it like it was supposed to. I waited a few weeks before taking it off for the first time, and as soon as I did, I nearly died." She revealed. "I vomited up blood, the pain was unimaginable, my magic had drained from my body…" She shook her head. "If Loke hadn't of shown up when he did, I would have died. He put the bracelet back on and then begged me to go get help from the guild, but I refused. I didn't want to drag anyone into my problem, especially when everyone else already had their own shit to deal with, so I kept it quiet.

"So I wore the bracelet for the past year, and I haven't had any problems since this month." Now she looked up to the healer. "Those dark thoughts returned, and have gotten so bad that I actually have to take whole days to recuperate and bring myself back. It's like the magic is trying to burst out from within me. Like it's trying to destroy me from the inside, it's horrible. Usually tightening the bracelet on my wrist helps, but it's so painful I don't think to do that." She wrapped her arms loosely around herself. "It's attacking my spirits, and I've found a way to divert it from them to me, so only I have to suffer the pain, not them." There was a short pause. "My spirits are telling me that if I keep doing it I probably won't last another month. The strain it has on my body is just too great, and on top of that I can't even take the bracelet off. So it's trapped inside me. I … thought I could just go peacefully, but then Makarov was there today when I had an attack and then brought me here." She smiled sadly. "I'm sorry."

A silence settled with the healer wracked as she her brain, trying to find some way to perhaps treat this, to give her more time. She tuned out Makarov's voice as she thought, the old man knowing she needed a little quiet.

She bit the inside of her cheek when her mind spawned something, and she stood up, looking down to her notepad. There were notes scribbled down everywhere and she tossed it onto the table next to her chair. She made her way across the room to a bookshelf, her eyes scanning the spines of the books before they landed on the one she had been looking for. She immediately reached out to grab it, the book thick and frail with the words 'Ancient Magical Items' scribbled on the red cover. It was a rather bland name, like the author couldn't figure out what they should call it and decided to just get right to the point of the book.

Flipping through the pages, she didn't bother to go sit down. She knew it was in there somewhere…

After another page flip, she stopped, having finally found the page she had been looking for.

"This is what we need." She said abruptly, breaking the silence and drawing both of the mages' attention. "Labrinth's Staff. It has the power to purge magic from a mage's system, it was made for removing dark magic, basically." She looked over to them, seeing hope sparkle in the blonde's eyes. "It's under the council's protection, so Makarov I think you should go yourself to retrieve it and maybe that redhead. They'll most likely listen to you two and please do whatever is necessary to get it. The sooner the magic is out, the better." She walked swiftly across the room, placing the book carefully down next to her notebook. A small sigh left her lips as she turned to the other mage.

"And you." She started. "First thing's first. That bracelet needs to come off." The woman immediately paled, reaching over to her wrist and grasping it lightly. "I know that might frighten you, but it's what you have to do. The Staff won't work with that on."

"Won't the magic take over her body if she removes it?" The old man asked, his dark eyes meeting her own.

"Possibly, but I already have a few remedies in mind to make sure she won't die." She looked back to Lucy. "But that doesn't mean you won't be in pain." Her words were firm and the blonde nodded, seeming to try to calm herself down.

"It'll be worth it in the end." The younger woman spoke with the smallest of smiles. "I'm just more worried about my spirits and the people around me. I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me."

"Don't worry about that." Porlyusica spoke sternly. "We're taking you back to the guild today. You're to have someone with you twenty-four seven, and you are going to tell them all what you told us." Lucy paled at her words. "It's for the best. I'm going to need all the help I can get for retrieving herbs and salves, they'll work faster if they know who and what it is for.

"As for the person who will be with you, it'll be their job to make sure you stay out of trouble. I'm assuming whatever is influencing your thoughts will also cause you to make bad decisions. So they basically need to make sure you don't kill someone or yourself." She said, crossing her arms over her chest. "But I won't take the bracelet off of you for at least another week, so you can rest assured."

"Do I have to stay in the infirmary?" She asked, tilting her head as she absently rubbed her wrist.

"No, you can still walk around and live your daily life, but after the bracelet is off, I think I'll put you on bedrest until we get the staff." She scrunched up her face in disgust. "Knowing the council, they probably won't hand it over right away. It'll take a while, but luckily we have the month to get you back on your feet."

Lucy nodded and stood up on her own, wobbling She surprised her by crossing the room and hugging her tightly, making Porlyusica feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Thank you," She said quietly, making the old woman 'tch' at her, her resolve softening ever so slightly about her. "Thank you so much for doing this. I can't even begin to tell you how grateful I am to you."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." She responded, carefully removing the woman and not willing to admit that it had actually felt a little nice to receive a hug. "Now, we have to start moving." She looked away from her. "Makarov, go fetch some of your guild monkeys and then have them report back here. I need to run a few more tests with her before we transfer her to the guild. Maybe send her team, they can be the first to know."

"Of course." The old man said, nodding. "Thank you for everything." He spoke quickly, exiting through her door and leaving the two woman in the small house.

Porlyusica looked to the nervous mage, her eyes on the book and obviously spotting the thing that she had failed to say in front of Makarov.

"I think you forgot to tell me that." She said softly, her fingers running over the page.

"This staff is the only way to get rid of that magic." She told her firmly, letting her arms drop back to her side. "If Makarov knew about that last part, he wouldn't have agreed to go get it." She paused for a moment. "It's a wager you'll have to take."

"Either way, I might die." She stated, her voice suddenly taking on a dark undertone. She looked up to the healer and smiled wryly. She couldn't see them before, but now that she was so close, she noticed the flecks of red coloring in her eyes. It startled her but she didn't comment. The blonde looked back to the book, the smile still etched on her face and making the woman take a cautious step back.

"Sounds like _fun_." She giggled.

* * *

 _ **Yo.**_

 **So yeah, I'm back from the dead and not very good at life. Sit down sunny and I'll tell you a story.**

 **Once upon a time there was a very dumb person named Phia. She forgot the plot to her own story and wrote a hella long chapter before realizing she fucked it all up. She was about to post the damn fic before she noticed and luckily stopped herself. She felt awful and proceeded to lose all her precious brain cells and then took a break to regain them. After this, she forced herself to sit down and salvage what she could from the bust and so this chapter was born. The end.**

 **I apologize for making all of you wait, it really does hurt my heart and make me feel very guilty.**

 **For those who had no idea what the fuck was going on with Lucy, here's a small briefing- Lucy had an interaction with Zeref and he attacked her and her magic. He gave her a smaller scale of the Anhersmamamamam curse (I refuse to use that stupid word ever again), and she had been struggling with it. She went out to find the Bracelet of Interiority and did eventually find it to trap and neutralize the magic. Only, it didn't work. If she attempted to take the bracelet off, she risked death. Porlyusica found a magical item called 'Labrinth's Staff' made by a weird magic dude. It basically works like the bracelet, only it works with just dark magic. It's the only thing that can save her- that's the mentality right now.**

 **I hope this wasn't too anti-climactic for y'all.**

 **Have a great daaaaaaaaaaaaaaay**


	13. Chapter 12: Lucy Part One

_**Chapter Twelve**_

 _ **Lucy**_

 _ **Part One.**_

* * *

It was like she was drowning.

Every time the magic took over, she easily related it to drowning. She was sinking deeper and deeper into the depths of some sick insanity, and no matter how much she tried to swim up, it dragged her deeper.

The fact that Porlyusica was there to witness such a thing made her truly upset. She didn't want anyone to have to face her when she was like that.

She could feel everything. _Everything_. She could hear and see, and she knew and remembered what she had thought- what she'd done. And she truly turned into a dark mage in those moments. It wasn't some kind of 'take over' as she proclaimed to Porlyusica and Makarov, she was infected and she was afraid. She would snap out of it within an hour, though somehow that didn't make her feel better about anything.

How could she let this disgusting magic take over her like this? Was she so weak and helpless that she couldn't protect herself from such filth? From Zeref's own magic?

The answer to that question was precisely the reason she hated it so much.

What would her friends think? What would Natsu think of her?

At the thought of him, her mind was finally captured in a cloud of black that she had been trying to fight for the moment. She felt her heart suddenly constrict in her chest and it hurt, but somehow it made her happy in a sadistic sort of way that she just _could not_ get enough of. She was staring down at an entry in some stupid book that was supposed to kill her, and she couldn't help but giggle.

"Sounds like _fun_."

Her body moved on its own, darkness sweetly caressing her thoughts and mind as she moved and spoke with her voice. She always _loved_ to listen to herself… there was such a nice tone of madness that coated every syllable and it was just fantastically engaging.

"Death is always fun." She whispered to the healing mage, as if wanting to convey the importance of the message. "It's the thrill of the chase, you know? Will I live on, continue in this world of misery and regret? Or will death claim me? Will I be put into the ground, buried by the ones I claim to love?" She grinned at the pink haired woman, relishing in the way her crimson eyes sparkled with something _so close_ to fear- but not quite. "What do you think?"

"I think you need to sit down and snap out of this." She responded sharply, the blonde pausing for a long moment as she just stared at the woman in silence. Her mind was whirling and irrational anger started to swell up within her, tilting her head as her smile slipped off her face.

"You didn't answer my question." She murmured to the woman, her eye twitching. "Answer it." Her hand twitched as well as she reached out to her, her fingers itching to bury themselves into her skin. She wanted her to hurt, to _bleed_. There wasn't enough blood… not enough to quench her thirst for it.

The woman flicked her hand away from her neck and Lucy felt a stab of sudden betrayal mixed with anger. She let out a few shaky breaths, as if trying to calm herself before she swung at the woman, her fist connecting with her cheek. She let out an excited puff of air as she laughed, her eyes going wide as she watched the mage struggle to get off the floor.

"All you fairies are so pathetic." She purred to her, kneeling down as she felt Zeref's dark magic swirling under her skin- _begging_ her to release it. "You think you can take me on? You think you're strong enough to defeat me? To defeat _Zeref_!?" Her voice had risen to a yell and she stood back up as the old woman sat up, glaring up at her with a look that had her laughing. There was that attitude she knew and loved!

The one that would get her killed.

"You have no idea what you're up against." She said lowly, threateningly. A sense of euphoria started to build in her system as she reached down and picked the woman up by the front of her clothes, holding her up in the air. A grin twitched at her lips as she watched her squirm for a moment before locking gazes with her.

"You know, I never get to do this." She told her with the manic grin, watching her irises swim with confusion- it gained another short laugh. "I always lock myself up in a little room with nothing to destroy, do you know how hard that is? Just wanting to see the blood of that _weak_ guild's people splattering the walls… that's all that I want."

Reaching forwards, she brushed her fingertips along her bruising skin, enjoying the way she flinched back at her touch. She gave her a toothy smile, a giggle falling past her clenched teeth. The woman swallowed thickly and Lucy's eye twitched with mirth as she raised her a little higher.

"Your blood can be the first."

The blonde threw the woman across the hut, listening with intoxicated glee as she cried out in pain. She laughed as the healer struggled to get up as she advanced towards her, watching as she exposed a nice place for her to kick.

She drove her boot into her side without any thought of mercy, watching the woman topple over with another deranged laugh.

"After you maybe I'll go after that pretty little girl." She told her, delighting in the way her crimson eyes widened in shock and slight anger. "I don't want anyone helping the fairies by healing their _wounds_. How pathetic of them, honestly. They just don't know when to stop fighting and let us good guys win." She said with exasperation, leaning down and smirking hugely at her. "Red is a nice color- the best, actually. It'll go well with your eyes once I finish painting this-" She was cut off by the door of the hut suddenly opening. Lucy's smirk turned into a frown as she watched a familiar pink haired man walk in, followed by his _friends_.

"Luce?" He called out for her in that _disgusting_ voice and she found herself just wanting to tear his throat out. Crazed jealousy washed over her after a moment as she realized something.

 _It's him._

Zeref wants him and not her.

"Makarov!" Porlyusica coughed out, the wizard saint entering the room the same time Lucy advanced forward towards _him_ , murder in her eyes.

" _You_." She hissed venomously, watching as his eyebrows furrowed in confusion and worry before she suddenly leapt at him.

They tumbled to the floor and she wrapped her fingers around his throat, gritting her teeth as she turned even angrier. She pressed against his throat as he grabbed her wrists futilely, her hunger to see him choke too much to ignore.

"He wants you. You and not me." She growled at him, squeezing tightly as she lifted his neck off the floor before slamming him back down into the floorboards, hearing them crack under the force she used. Jealousy flared in her chest as he struggled to breathe, making a rather pathetic sounding choking noise, and she wondered how on Earthland _this_ idiot could be the lord's brother. He was weak and wasn't even fighting back like a fucking coward and-

Suddenly she was being ripped off of him and thrown across the room and out the door. The sun hit her as she tumbled down the stairs leading up to the old hag's door, and she rolled a few feet before settling.

With a groan, she pushed herself off the ground before she felt her hands start to shake.

If she was angry before, she was livid now.

Feeling something painfully empowering stirring under her skin, she stood up with heavy breaths. Her eyes met the Titania's and she was too fucking angry to care.

"You got in my way." She said lowly, a threat in her voice. "I suggest you step aside and let me finish with that weakling!" She yelled. "My lord doesn't know what he's talking about! I will kill him! _Me_!" Before she could even stop herself she started to laugh, the sound deranged and maddening and crazy and she _loved it_. It fueled the fire in her heart, but the second she returned her gaze to the red haired mage's, she froze.

Something foreign clawed its way up through her and she took an involuntary step back.

She swallowed as sweat beaded on her forehead, watching as the Titania glared at her, somehow promising her death in just one look.

And… it scared her.

"Stop." Lucy said, her voice now a croak as the requip mage kept her gaze steadfast, their eyes locked. "I said stop." She repeated, louder and somehow more desperate. She swallowed thickly when she didn't and she took a few steps back, placing a hand on her forehead as the fear flushed through her.

It was like she was frozen. Her body wouldn't respond and she could only think one thing, and it repeated like a mantra in her mind.

 _She's going to kill me._

She fell to her knees and she dropped forward, feeling a fear she had never felt before- and from one look from this… this _bimbo_. She realized faintly that her breathing had sped up and she was beginning to shut down. She wanted her to stop. She wanted her to disappear, to leave her alone to just fucking _die_.

A moment passed before something hard impacted her head and everything went black.

* * *

 **Hello.**

 **I'm just going to go ahead and stop apologizing for the wait. You all know how awful I feel for making you wait after that last chapter... but hopefully this makes up for it?**

 **All your comments and follows and favs really do a lot to boost my inspiration, so thank you!**

 **Probably from what you read at the top, there will be a few more parts to Lucy's POV. It's indefinite right now as to how many there will be, but there probably will only be two... so maybe not really all that indefinite but whatever!**

 **I've been so excited to write this particular chapter, I'm just a procrastinator is all. For some reason, writing crazy people makes my heart feel so complete *sighs dreamily***

 **Anywho, thanks so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed!**

 **-FireDragonPhia**


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